Some routes are fair‑weather friends. Shining Tor isn’t one of them for me. It’s the walk I keep in my back pocket for the days when the sky can’t quite decide what it’s doing and the forecast looks like a shrug. The kind of day where waterproofs go on and off more times than they should and the wind greets you before you’ve even shut the car door. It’s one of my go-to walks for when I feel, meh, and it always works to reset me. Instead of fighting the weather, you end up walking with it.

The quiet woodland always feels like a home with trees knocking lightly in the wind, the ground soft underfoot, and a patter of rain on the canopy. There are some lovely friends to encounter along the way. St Joseph’s Shrine appears like something out of a story. There’s a touch of Hagrid’s hut about it; a place that looks like it belongs to bad‑weather days with candles, damp stone, a brief, welcome pause out of the wind. 

Cat’s Tor and Shining Tor offer height and drama, with broad ridges and a  straightforward, simple line to follow even when the cloud drops. When gaps open up, the views spill quietly across Cheshire and the nearby hills.

It’s a route that works in almost any mood, but there’s something about the wet and windy days that suit it best. The stone under your boots feels more comforting, the air cleaner, the colours deeper. Then there’s the long slope of bright green grass leading back to the car, with views of Errwood Reservoir which always feels like a gentle exhale. By the time you descend you’ve been rinsed through in the best way. Not just by rain, but by the simple act of being out in it, moving steadily through a landscape that takes the weather in its stride.